All games through Nov. 30 have been scratched after a deal couldn’t be reached between the NHL and its Players’ Association.

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman speaks during a press conference, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012 in New York, announcing that the Islanders hockey club will move from Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y., and play at Brooklyn's Barclays Center starting in 2015.

By:Kevin McGranSports Reporter, Published on Fri Oct 26 2012

There is one category in which the NHL betters its rival leagues: number of games lost due to work stoppages.

And the NHL’s lead just keeps getting bigger and bigger.

With November’s games now washed away — meaning the league’s best guess for a start to a short season is now Dec. 1 — the NHL will have wiped away 2,042 games in the last 20 years, 326 regular season games so far this season.

The Jan. 1 Winter Classic featuring the Maple Leafs and Red Wings was not cancelled — yet — but the league faced a Nov. 2 deadline to pay the University of Michigan another $250,000 on top of the $100,000 it has already deposited. The league is paying close to $3 million for the right to play in the Big House.

With no talks planned and both sides issuing statements about how sorry they are that things have gotten this far, the business side of the league would appear to be in a shambles.

“The whole thing has affected the NHL’s momentum. It’s Momentum Interruptus,” said Brian Cooper, a former executive with Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment and now president of S and E Sponsorship Group.

“They had a Stanley Cup team in one of the biggest markets in the U.S. (L.A.) that has re-awoken to hockey.

“They’re launching on one of the biggest networks (NBC) that was going to cross-promote the heck out of weekend games.

“But more importantly, the owners are going to be losing a portion of the season. It’s tough to put a number on it. They could come back like the NBA coming back (from a lockout last year) on Christmas Day. They had some great success with it. But the NHL is not the NBA.”

It is of course possible that not all games are lost, that the league could come to a deal with the players’ association and salvage a season, if perhaps a slightly shortened one.

“We acknowledge and accept that there is joint responsibility in collective bargaining and, though we are profoundly disappointed that a new agreement has not been attained to this point, we remain committed to achieving an agreement that is fair for the players and the clubs — one that will be good for the game and our fans,” deputy commissioner Bill Daly said in a statement.

The league’s move has an overall effect of shrinking hockey-related revenue — which hit $3.3 billion last season — by about $720 million if no games is are played in November.

Fewer games means less revenue. That will make it harder for the players to stick to their demand that current contracts are paid in full. If, say, only 66 games are played this season, the NHL could argue players should only be paid 66/82nds of their salary.

NHLPA executive director Donald Fehr issued a statement, repeating the union’s request for talks without “pre-conditions” stand and took issue with the league’s “take-it-or-leave-it” approach.

“The message from the owners seems to be: if you don't give us exactly what we want, there is no point in talking,” said Fehr. “They have shown they are very good at delivering deadlines and demands, but we need a willing partner to negotiate.

“We hope they return to the table in order to get the players back on the ice soon.”

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SOME KEY PARTS OF THE NHL’s CONTRACT FOR THE WINTER CLASSIC WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN

LEAGUE AGREED TO PAY: $2.85 million for use of stadium

DEPOSIT: $100,000

NOV. 2: $250,000

DEC. 7: $1 million

DEC. 28: $1 million

JAN. 18: $500,000

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